Arsenal have suffered another transfer setback after Real Madrid told them to forget about an ambitious loan swoop for Los Blancos' midfield prodigy Eduardo Camavinga.
The Gunners bolstered their squad with the capture of Leandro Trossard on Friday but Mikel Arteta is still scouring the market for new recruits before the transfer window slams shut in a bid to boost their unlikely title bid.
After striking a deal with Spezia for Poland defender Jakub Kiwior, who is set to finalise his switch to the Emirates on Sunday, Arsenal are now expected to step up their search for a new midfielder after they failed to strike a last-gasp deal for Aston Villa enforcer Douglas Luiz back in the summer.
Reports on Friday claimed that Camavinga had emerged as the Gunners' top target and that the Premier League leaders were hopeful that Real Madrid would be receptive to a deal that would see the 20-year-old head to the Emirates on loan for the remainder of the season.
There were high hopes for the France international after he moved to Spain in the summer but he has struggled for minutes this term.
But despite his limited game-time, Real boss Carlo Ancelotti has scotched talk that the Spanish giants would allow the "untouchable" midfielder to leave the club this month. In a press conference, the Los Blancos boss said: "He [Camavinga] is untouchable, like Kroos and Modric."
Ancelotti's comments come just hours after Camavinga's agent, Jonathan Barnett, also insisted that the youngster would not be leaving the Bernabeu. He said of the rumours: "There’s no truth. Of course every club in the world would want him, but he’s very happy in Real Madrid and Real Madrid are very happy with Camavinga."
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Real Madrid's hands-off warning comes just 24 hours after the Gunners were told that another rumoured target, Jaidon Anthony, would rather stay at Bournemouth than join the Gunners.
Anthony has just six months remaining on his current deal with the Cherries but according to his agent, Godfrey Torto, the winger is keen to discuss fresh terms.
Torto told the The Daily Echo : "In terms of the contract situation, we are in dialogue. I think Jaidon has always been wanting to stay at the club and I think the main thing is trying to find a fair deal that he's happy with and works for the club. But we are in dialogue and it was last left for the club to come back.
"So, that's where the situation is, basically. He is happy at the club and we are in dialogue about a contract, but we're just waiting to hear back from Bournemouth."
